The New England Antiquities Research Association (NEARA) is a

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

founded 1964. According to its website, it "is dedicated to a better understanding of our historic and prehistoric past through the study and preservation of

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

's stone sites in their cultural context." It is widely engaged in

fringe theories A fringe theory is an idea or a viewpoint which differs from the accepted scholarship of the time within its field. Fringe theories include the models and proposals of fringe science, as well as similar ideas in other areas of scholarship, such a ...

and regarded by mainstream

archeologist Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of Artifact (archaeology), artifacts, architecture, biofact (archaeology), biofacts ...

s as a

pseudoarchaeological Pseudoarchaeology—also known as alternative archaeology, fringe archaeology, fantastic archaeology, cult archaeology, and spooky archaeology—is the interpretation of the past from outside the archaeological science community, which rejects ...

organization.

Criticism

The membership of NEARA consists for the most part of

amateur An amateur () is generally considered a person who pursues an avocation independent from their source of income. Amateurs and their pursuits are also described as popular, informal, autodidacticism, self-taught, user-generated, do it yourself, DI ...

s, and the organization was in 2003 described as a 'hotbed of "

Diffusionist In cultural anthropology and cultural geography, cultural diffusion, as conceptualized by Leo Frobenius in his 1897/98 publication ''Der westafrikanische Kulturkreis'', is the spread of cultural items—such as ideas, styles, religions, technologi ...

" thought, the belief that the Americas were widely visited by European and Asiatic cultures before Columbus'. Writing about NEARA's interest in lithic sites, archaeologist

Kenneth Feder Kenneth L. "Kenny" Feder (born August 1, 1952) is a professor of archaeology at Central Connecticut State University and the author of several books on archaeology and criticism of pseudoarchaeology such as '' Frauds, Myths, and Mysteries: Scien ...

has said that "For many in NEARA, these lithic sites represent a wealth of remarkable evidence of the ancient occupation of New England by ancient Celts and other western Europeans long before the arrival of the Pilgrims in Massachusetts or even

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus * lij, Cristoffa C(or)ombo * es, link=no, Cristóbal Colón * pt, Cristóvão Colombo * ca, Cristòfor (or ) * la, Christophorus Columbus. (; born between 25 August and 31 October 1451, died 20 May 1506) was a ...

in the Caribbean. Orthodox archaeology and history reject this claim, ascribing most of the lithic sites to more recent migrants to New England, namely, seventeenth-, eighteenth-, and nineteenth-century settlers and farmers. Archaeological skepticism about claims of much earlier dates for the chambers is based on the complete lack of any artifactual evidence found in any of the chambers that would allow us to confidently trace these features to an earlier time period."

Publications

The association has published ''New England Antiquities Research Association Journal'', formerly known as ''New England Antiquities Research Association Newsletter'', since 1964."New England Antiquities Research Association Journal" in ''Ulrich's International Periodicals Directory 1997''. R R Bowker. 1996. . Volume 1 (Classified list of subjects; A - D). Page 365
Google Books
/ref> The Journal is published twice a year, as of 2016. It was formerly published quarterly.Christine Maurer. "*5829* New England Antiquities Research Association (NEARA)". Encyclopedia of Associations. 34th Edition. Gale. 1999. . Volume 1 (National Organizations of the US). Page 633
Internet Archive
According to Ulrich as of 1997 the number of associated disciplines it discusses was growing. It also published ''Across Before Columbus? Evidence for Transoceanic Contact with the Americas prior to 1492'' in 1998, .

References

External links

* {{Authority control Organizations established in 1964 Pre-Columbian trans-oceanic contact History of New England Non-profit organizations based in the United States Pseudoarchaeology 1964 establishments in the United States